We’ve all seen the numbers: only 35% of students enrolled in higher education STEM are women, and just 28% of researchers worldwide are women. Statistics like these, borrowed from UNESCO’s Cracking the Code Report, illuminate the long road ahead to developing gender equality in STEM.
While the conversation in media has largely been focused on keeping young women in STEM programs, UNESCO reveals the importance of women teaching STEM programs.
Wizeline Academy has focused on the encouragement of women in STEM from this angle — by providing free technical courses for our Mexican tech community, with female lecturers and mentors involved in nearly all of our courses. We believe the inclusion of women educators and role models impacts the future of women in STEM in multiple ways:
- Encouraging women to attend our courses who may have felt otherwise excluded in a male-dominated industry.
- Through a 1:1 mentorship model fostering conversations and relationships with our female mentors.
- Providing an opportunity for our lecturers and mentors to see the positive influence they personally have on other women in STEM.
Here are some of the stories from the women of Wizeline Academy in celebration of International Women’s Day.
Being a lecturer of the first Wizeline Academy QA course taught me more than what I actually shared during the talk. I was trembling, nervous and overwhelmed, but I was really inspired by all the hard work that other women Academy lecturers had done before me, so I did it. It was awesome. One day, one of my new co-workers said, “Thank you, Liz. Thanks to your course at Wizeline Academy, I was able to see how things are done at Wizeline and left my previous job which was not challenging me enough.” That was the most awesome reward someone can receive! As women educators and technologists, we can break the ceiling glass around women in technology one talk at a time, one step at a time, and always be inspired by the great work of our fellow women in STEM.
Liz Heredia, QA Engineer, lecturer & mentor for QA Academy
Teaching a Wizeline Academy course in coding — a subject matter mostly dominated by men — helped me confirm I am on the right path and that gender equality in STEM is possible. I learned from my male peers and students, and I believe they learned from myself.
Romina Espinosa, Software Engineer, lecturer & mentor for Software Development Academy
Teaching helped me build confidence and visibility. As a Mexican woman, I’m constantly struggling with impostor syndrome — in my career as a UX Designer, as well as my life as a professional woman in Mexico. Teaching at Academy has helped me build the confidence I need to improve in my career, and at the same time it has helped me create more visibility about my work and experience with my peers and the community.
Rebeka Rubio, Sr. UX Designer, lecturer & mentor for UX Academy
As a former Wizeline Academy student, and now a lecturer, Wizeline Academy has brought me closer to other women who are interested in technology and who have faced struggles similar to mine. Talking to them makes me realize how important it is that we continue bringing inclusion to our workplaces and that we keep letting women know that they have a place, a voice, and a role in the tech industry.
Maribel Carrillo, Technical Writer, lecturer & mentor for Technical Writing Academy
Teaching at Wizeline Academy faded away the feeling of not having a relevant role. People want to learn about my role because of its importance in the industry, the value it provides to products, and the usefulness for other areas. It also feels great to welcome another woman to the courses as you can see on their faces the sentence “if she can do it, so can I,” and yes, women can enter this male-dominated industry.
Bere Beltran, Technical Writer, lecturer & mentor for Technical Writing Academy
Wendy Johansson 